Director/Senior Director, Clinical Operations

Company Overview:

At Renasant Bio, we are driven by a simple goal: to change what’s possible for patients with kidney disease. ADPKD remains one of the most challenging areas in medicine, and we believe it requires bold thinking, rigorous science, and a team committed to doing things differently.

We’re looking for individuals who bring both scientific rigor and creativity to hard problems, and who believe great work is built through respectful, direct collaboration. You communicate with honesty and transparency, adapt quickly as priorities evolve, and hold yourself—and others—to a high standard. Above all, you operate with urgency and purpose, grounded in the knowledge that patients are waiting.

Based at Bakar Labs in Berkeley, CA, we are advancing new therapies designed to make a meaningful difference for patients.

The Role:

Renasant Bio is seeking a Director or Senior Director, Clinical Operations to build and lead the operational foundation of our clinical development organization as we advance multiple kidney disease programs toward the clinic.

The successful candidate will join at a stage where programs are transitioning from discovery and translational research into IND-enabling activities and first-in-human development. They will be responsible for building operational plans from the ground up, and determining how Renasant should structure its clinical execution capabilities as the company evolves.

This leader will help answer fundamental questions including:

• What operational capabilities should be built internally versus outsourced?
• Which CROs, specialty laboratories, and external vendors are best positioned to support our programs, and how should those partnerships be structured, managed, and scaled as the portfolio advances?
• How should global clinical execution be designed and operationally managed for rare kidney diseases and genetically defined patient populations, including oversight of CROs, sites, and regional partners?
• Which investigator networks, patient advocacy organizations, and clinical sites will be most critical to successful development, and how should those relationships be cultivated, coordinated, and leveraged throughout the clinical lifecycle?

The ideal candidate thrives in emerging biotechnology environments, enjoys creating structure where none exists, and has experience operationalizing novel therapies from preclinical development through early clinical execution.

Responsibilities

Create Clinical Infrastructure from the Ground Up

• Design and implement scalable clinical operations processes, governance structures, vendor oversight models, and study management practices.
• Establish the framework for how Renasant executes clinical trials as the organization grows.
• Evaluate which functions should be maintained internally and which should be outsourced to CROs and specialized vendors.
• Support future hiring plans and organizational design for Clinical Operations.

Drive Rare Disease and Genetic Testing Strategies

• Support clinical studies involving genetically defined patient populations and genetic confirmation of diagnosis.
• Develop operational approaches for patient identification, screening, and enrollment in rare disease populations.
• Establish relationships with nephrology investigators, rare disease centers of excellence, patient advocacy organizations, and specialty testing partners.
• Support global recruitment strategies where patient populations may be geographically dispersed.

CRO and Vendor Strategy

• Lead selection, oversight, and performance management of CROs, central laboratories, genetic testing vendors, imaging vendors, and specialty providers.
• Establish clear governance structures and accountability measures for external partners.
• Ensure external partners function as extensions of the Renasant team while maintaining high standards of quality, speed, and execution.

Build the Bridge from Preclinical to Clinical

• Serve as the primary Clinical Operations leader responsible for transitioning programs from preclinical and translational development into clinical execution.
• Partner with DMPK, Toxicology, and Research teams to develop operationally feasible clinical development plans.
• Identify operational risks, and execution challenges before studies enter the clinic.
• Provide operational input into protocol development, patient identification approaches, and study feasibility.

Lead Early Clinical Development Execution

• Build operational strategies for first-in-human and proof-of-concept studies.
• Lead feasibility assessments, country selection, site identification, enrollment planning, and vendor selection activities.
• Develop study timelines, budgets, risk mitigation plans, and execution strategies.
• Oversee and execute study startup through database lock and study closeout.

Qualifications

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in life sciences or related field; advanced degree preferred.
• 10+ years of clinical operations experience (15+ for Senior Director)
• Experience leading clinical studies from startup through database lock and study closeout.
• Experience in rare disease, nephrology, ADPKD, genetic disease, or other specialized patient populations.
• Experience with clinical studies requiring genetic testing, genetic confirmation of diagnosis, or genomics-driven patient identification.
• Strong experience managing CROs and external vendors in outsourced operating models.
• Demonstrated success leading study startup activities and global site activation efforts.
• Experience developing study budgets, timelines, and operational risk management plans.
• Strong knowledge of ICH-GCP, FDA, EMA, and global clinical trial regulations.
• Excellent communication, leadership, and cross-functional collaboration skills.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience supporting global clinical trials, including sites outside the United States.
• Experience building or scaling clinical operations functions within emerging biotechnology companies.
• Experience supporting regulatory inspections and audit readiness activities.
• Experience with decentralized or hybrid clinical trial models.

We do not discriminate in regard to race, color, religion, national origin, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, ancestry, physical or mental disability, veteran status, or any other legally protected characteristics.

Please note that we do not accept unsolicited resumes from recruitment agencies and external recruiters. No fees will be paid for such submissions.

We may use artificial intelligence (AI) tools to support parts of the hiring process, such as reviewing applications, analyzing resumes, or assessing responses and identifying potential inconsistencies or verification signals in application materials based on available information. These tools assist our recruitment team but do not replace human judgment. Final hiring decisions are ultimately made by humans. If you would like more information about how your data is processed, please contact us.